Red Bull junior Rivera wins Eurocup-3’s third Algarve race

Photo: Red Bull

Red Bull junior Ernesto Rivera won the third Eurocup-3 race at Algarve to become Mattia Colnaghi’s closest title rival.

Colnaghi’s points lead was reduced pre-race, as the MP Motorsport driver a penalty for passing during a safety car period dropped him from fifth to 21st in the results of race one on Saturday.

Campos Racing’s Francisco Macedo lost his race two podium to a penalty too, but was only demoted one place behind MP’s Valerio Rinicella.

There was further drama before race three got underway, as qualifying pace-setter Jesse Carrasquedo and team-mate Macedo were handed five-place grid penalties that dropped them to sixth and 11th.

Rivera therefore lined up on pole, and had to lead the field through a second formation lap due to a tyre blower being on the track at turn one.

At the start he swept to the inside to defend from Kacper Sztuka, as his other Campos team-mate Jules Caranta looked to the outside. Sztuka nosed into the rear of Rivera at turn one, with the leader’s car then wobbling.

Caranta was uncompromised on the outside and took second at turn three, with Colnaghi later also passing Sztuka, and MP’s Maciej Gladysz got up to fifth from eighth place by forcing Carrasquedo off.

Racing was neutralised on lap two due to Macedo crashing out, and it did not resume until lap six of 16. Colnaghi dived down the inside of Caranta at turn three and sent him slightly off, as Carrasquedo broke his front wing by going through the gravel there. As he dropped even further down the order, there was a three-wide fight for second at turn five.

Sztuka had the inside and got ahead, but he then ran Colnaghi off at the exit while Caranta did the switchback to be on Sztuka’s inside as they went up the hill. At turn six they went either side of Sztuka and passed him, with the inside line granting Colnaghi second at turn seven. Three corners later, Sztuka overtook Caranta.

Their battles allowed Rivera to pull 1.6 seconds clear, and he grew that gap to 4.978s. Colnaghi ended the race under investigation.

Sztuka blocked Caranta down the pit straight on lap seven, but Caranta was still able to go around the outside of him at turn one.

On the penultimate lap Sztuka dived past Caranta at turn five but he went straight back past at the exit, and while Sztuka was able to go around the outside at turn one on the final lap he then went wide at turn three and conceded third again.

Rinicella overtook Gladysz for fifth as they began lap seven, then sent him off at turn five. That put Gladysz under pressure from Campos’s Enzo Tarnvanichkul, and Gladysz forced him off at the same corner.

The outcome of that was track limits penalties, which promoted Tarnvanichkul to fifth.

Palou Motorsport’s James Egozi finished eighth, and MP’s Emmo Fittipaldi passed Sainteloc Racing’s Garrett Berry on the last lap for ninth.

Race results (16 laps)